AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR) Shares Purchased by Van ECK Associates Corp

Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in AptarGroup, Inc. (NYSE:ATR) by 40.0% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 37,849 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 10,815 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in AptarGroup were worth $6,345,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ballentine Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of AptarGroup by 2.3% in the third quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 3,315 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $531,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its holdings in AptarGroup by 3.6% in the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,361 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $332,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the period. Argent Trust Co raised its position in AptarGroup by 6.1% during the 2nd quarter. Argent Trust Co now owns 1,685 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $237,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Adirondack Trust Co. lifted its stake in AptarGroup by 25.0% during the 2nd quarter. Adirondack Trust Co. now owns 500 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, Fulton Bank N.A. boosted its holdings in shares of AptarGroup by 6.0% in the 3rd quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 2,058 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $330,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.52% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of AptarGroup from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded AptarGroup from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $155.00 to $215.00 in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Dbs Bank upgraded AptarGroup from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on AptarGroup from $168.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $195.00.

Insider Activity at AptarGroup

In other AptarGroup news, Director Monnas Giovanna Kampouri sold 1,922 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.43, for a total transaction of $277,594.46. Following the transaction, the director now owns 8,839 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,276,616.77. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Robert Kuhn sold 200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.18, for a total transaction of $30,036.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 65,552 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,844,599.36. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Monnas Giovanna Kampouri sold 1,922 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.43, for a total transaction of $277,594.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,839 shares in the company, valued at $1,276,616.77. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 46,657 shares of company stock worth $7,562,862 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

AptarGroup Stock Up 0.9 %

ATR stock opened at $174.72 on Friday. AptarGroup, Inc. has a one year low of $122.29 and a one year high of $175.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.62. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $160.57 and its 200 day moving average is $150.87. The firm has a market cap of $11.63 billion, a PE ratio of 35.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.57.

AptarGroup Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 24th will be given a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 24th. AptarGroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.14%.

AptarGroup declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, October 10th that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the industrial products company to buy up to 4.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

AptarGroup Profile

AptarGroup, Inc designs and manufactures a range of drug delivery, consumer product dispensing, and active material science solutions and services for the pharmaceutical, beauty, personal care, home care, and food and beverage markets. The company operates through Aptar Pharma, Aptar Beauty, and Aptar Closures segments.